The Knights' Attitude

Saturday.

A relatively unremarkable carriage, pulled by an ordinary Will City mule, arrived outside Knight Victor's villa.

The driver in the front dismounted and opened the wooden carriage door, which lacked glass windows. Miss Linda Russell, the eldest daughter of the Russell family, stepped out, holding a small black leather purse.

"Please wait," Linda said to the driver.

"Yes, Miss," the driver replied, bowing respectfully.

The Russell family naturally did not own a carriage or a driver; Linda had rented this carriage from a livery stable. After instructing the driver, Linda approached the main gate of Victor's villa. The iron gate was open as usual, and the old gatekeeper emerged.

"Miss, who are you?" the old gatekeeper asked, bowing slightly towards Linda with a puzzled expression.

"I am Linda Russell. Colin and Smith's sister. I need to see Colin," Linda stated calmly, maintaining her aristocratic composure despite her urgency.

"Ah, Miss Linda." The old gatekeeper immediately became attentive. He knew how close his master had become to the Russell brothers recently. He promptly invited Linda in and asked a maid to escort her to the main villa.

In the villa's living room, Colin was discussing business matters with Knight Victor and five other Imperial Knights, including Abel Miller. There were no servants attending them, but the tea table was laid out with black tea, biscuits, cake, and plums.

With the Noah Company's wheat acquisition proceeding smoothly, immense profits were within reach. Knight Victor's choice of tea for his guests had once again become Duke Black Tea.

"My sister?" Colin, having been informed of Linda's arrival by a maid who entered to announce her, stood up in surprise.

Knight Victor and the other Imperial Knights were also somewhat surprised. Knight Victor quickly recovered and said to the maid with a smile, "Please invite Miss Linda in."

The maid acknowledged and turned to leave. Shortly after, Linda walked in, appearing somewhat reserved. She was aware of the status of the five individuals present – they were Imperial Knights, and in the past, she would never have had the opportunity to be in such company.

Yet, her brother, Colin Russell, was now mingling closely with them.

Sensing Linda's nervousness, Colin stepped forward, hugged her, stood on tiptoe, and kissed her left cheek. Holding her hand, he introduced her, "Esteemed sirs, this is the pillar of the Russell family, my sister, Linda Russell."

"Esteemed Knights," Linda said, her slight nervousness dissipating as Colin held her small hand. She curtsied gracefully to everyone.

"Miss Linda." The five Imperial Knights also stood and bowed to Linda. Among aristocrats, the depth of a bow conveyed their attitude. However, if Linda had not been Colin's sister, she likely wouldn't have even been able to enter Knight Victor's residence.

The five Imperial Knights exchanged a few words with Linda, complimenting her on raising Colin so well. Linda was pleased internally and responded with humble modesty, further easing the atmosphere.

However, remembering the purpose of her visit, Linda turned to Colin and said, "Colin, the heir to the Brown family, the next generation's Knight Brown. Lyon Brown has sent someone to invite you to lunch. It's tomorrow at eleven o'clock, at the Baya Restaurant."

The Brown family, feudal vassals of Marquis Kent and hereditary lords, held a reputation that was well-known even to the five Imperial Knights.

"Colin, Lyon Brown is your classmate, isn't he? Why would he specifically invite you to lunch? Are you on good terms?" Knight Victor asked with some curiosity.

Colin also appeared surprised, but then he sneered, "My relationship with Lyon Brown is neither hostile nor particularly friendly."

A playful expression then crossed Colin's face. "On the contrary, Lyon Brown seems to be on good terms with Brian."

Lyon Brown and Brian are on good terms? The Imperial Knights frowned. Even a fool could understand Lyon Brown's intentions in stepping forward at this time; he was clearly acting as an intermediary.

While they could easily deal with Kebir and Brian as a father-son duo, the Brown family was a colossal entity, making them seem rather insignificant in comparison.

"Colin, what do you plan to do?" Victor's expression turned serious, even grave.

"Colin, don't mistake us for just any Imperial Knights; we are all veteran knights, and some of our families have no successors. If we sell the grain now, we'll make a substantial profit. And grain merchants like Kebir have also suffered heavy blows and won't be able to compete with us next year. It's best to cut our losses," Imperial Knight Abel Miller stated directly. This old knight was truly ancient; he appeared to be only sixty or seventy years old on the surface, with silver hair and relatively smooth, albeit lined, skin, but he was actually seventy-eight years old.

The other four knights, including Victor, were either elderly or had retired from the Gale Knight Order due to injuries. In terms of political influence, they were no match for younger knights, let alone the heir of the Brown family.

With the two of them speaking, the remaining three knights also voiced their agreement.

Colin considered for a moment, then slowly shook his head. "Compromise is indeed an option, but I understand Brian. And by extension, I understand Kebir. If we don't deal with this father and son duo this time, we'll face endless trouble."

As he spoke, Colin couldn't help but shake his head. After defeating Brian that one time, he had thought the man would settle down. He hadn't anticipated all the subsequent events.

"As for Lyon Brown. Although he is the heir to the Brown family and the future hereditary Knight Brown, he is still only a teenager. He's just my classmate. Can he truly represent the Brown family?"

A slight smile appeared on Colin's face.

"Colin, precisely because Lyon Brown is only a teenager, his future is long. And while you are excellent, you may not be able to compete with him. Once you graduate from the academy and enter the Marquis's knight order, if Lyon Brown holds a grudge, he can easily suppress you. Within the Marquis's territory, the influence of these hereditary knights is absolutely terrifying," Knight Victor's expression grew increasingly serious.

He had the deepest personal ties with the Russell family and absolutely did not want Colin to fall out with the Brown family.

"That's right. I've seen many cases where knights offended these hereditary knights and were forced to retire from the knight order, becoming adventurers. Some succeeded, but more died in the wilderness or were crippled," Knight Abel nodded in agreement.

The other three knights also echoed their sentiments. In short, to thrive within the Marquis's territory, one absolutely could not offend these hereditary knights.

"Esteemed sirs, please believe me. I will have a great future. I will not be like those who leave the knight order in disgrace or die as adventurers," Colin said, displaying a confident smile as he bowed slightly and elegantly to the Imperial Knights.

The Imperial Knights were naturally skeptical. Anyone could boast. But as they looked at Colin's demeanor, they gradually began to believe him.

Under this young man's leadership, they, the old knights, were experiencing a resurgence of political influence and were on the verge of receiving a significant sum of money to improve their straitened circumstances. Among the young nobles of Will City, who else could achieve this?

Victor was no exception. Only he knew that Smith Russell possessed the Bronze Bloodline.

This pair of brothers is so outstanding, perhaps in the future, they might truly break through these political barriers and become great nobles, Knight Victor mused.